As an award-winning author, screenwriter and filmmaker, Clay Stafford has had quite the busy career.
The Franklin resident has been swarming in the literary and creative realm over the past several decades. Among his list of accomplishments, he has written a number of books and other published pieces, directed and produced the feature-length documentary on the story of Franklin’s Inge Smith titled One of the Miracles and founded the Killer Nashville writing conference that has been held every August for the past 16 years.
Here lately, however, Stafford has been particularly rewarded for a more under-the-radar assignment. He has been writer in residence and creative writing teacher at Battle Ground Academy since the start of the 2020-21 school year, and though it’s but a part in his ongoing creative outlets each week, it’s a task that Stafford treasures.
“It’s actually refreshing for me because I spend all of my time writing by myself, and to be able to go and get interaction with these students is a lot of fun for me,” Stafford recently said over iced tea at a Franklin restaurant, with three of his students sharing a booth. “And it makes you think, too. You do stuff all the time and you just intuitively know to do it. But when you’re teaching it, you have to ask yourself the theory behind it and the why. …
“Basically I just love to teach. It’s not a job for me. I enjoy the creative stuff and getting to chat with the students. It’s something I look forward to.”
Greta Grier
That seems to go for his students as well. Seniors Kathleen Jefferson and Ellis Stafford (who is Stafford’s son) and junior Greta Grier echoed their teacher’s sentiment about the class. They’re getting the benefit of being able to uncover their creative sides.
“I’ve always liked to write because I feel like it’s the best way to put my feelings out,” Grier said. “I’ve been pretty good at writing essays, but I wanted to be able to express myself in writing instead of just writing an essay in English. I did like writing before, but this class definitely accentuated that and now I feel more confident in my writing.
“He has been such an influence on my life. I probably would think I’m a bad writer if not for him.”
Kathleen Jefferson
Jefferson wrote her first short story in second grade, and the words have flowed ever since.
“I’ve always enjoyed writing, but I was never good at finishing things,” she said. “So having that structure and getting feedback improved my writing, and actually having a deadline to work with has helped as well.”
Ironically, Ellis Stafford is more about science and math, and plans to major in biochemistry and molecular biology when he enters Belmont University next fall.
Ellis Stafford
“I really liked getting to explore more my creative side,” he said. “Obviously it’s a bit different because he’s my dad. He has taught me how to write and expand the creativeness at home prior to [taking] the class. And then once I was in the class there was more structure. … I enjoy writing, so it was good to be able to let that part of myself out in the class.”
Stafford’s desire to help young writers didn’t begin with his position at BGA. He was a professor at the University of Miami some 30 years ago, and also designed an English and language arts curriculum for the Miami-Dade County school system.
The Killer Nashville writing conference he founded in 2006 was created to bring together forensic experts, writers and fans of crime and thriller literature. But its overall objective is to “educate and empower aspiring and established writers, and connect them with other industry professionals,” reads part of the conference’s website.
On a smaller scale and through a more age-appropriate method, that’s what Stafford is doing with his class at BGA.
“I hope to help them find their voice, to find the courage to express their voice,” Stafford said of his students. “If they want to dream something like to be a writer, I can serve as an example to them.”